title: Hazards of ear-piercing procedures which traverse cartilage: a report of Pseudomonas perichondritis and review of other complications.
abstract: A case of severe Pseudomonas perichondritis following a 'fashionable' ear-piercing procedure, performed high on the pinna, is reported. The current vogue for such 'high' ear-piercing, which traverses cartilage rather than the fatty tissue of the ear lobe as in 'traditional' ear-piercing, increases the risk of infection which may produce severe cosmetic deformity.
authors.affiliation: Department of Otolaryngology, Queen's Medical Centre, University Hospital, Nottingham.
authors.forename: V L
authors.initials: VL
authors.lastname: Cumberworth
authors.forename: T B
authors.initials: TB
authors.lastname: Hogarth
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D004425:Ear Cartilage / Q000601:surgery; D004426:Ear Deformities, Acquired / Q000209:etiology* / Q000473:pathology; D004431:Ear, External / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D011552:Pseudomonas Infections / Q000150:complications* / Q000473:pathology